I have flying squirrel’s in the attic of my mountain cabin. It is cap cod style so there is no attic access except for a small closet where the furnace is located. They do visit that location on occasion but not regularly. Will the use of the Night Flyer Trail Sent attract them to that space so as to be able to trap them? What cage would be recommended (822155, 822159, 822206) Would a sonic device poked up in the rafter space be more effective? (if so what is difference between 747774 & 747810?) thanks for the help.
As explained in our SQUIRREL CONTROL ARTICLE, it’s vital for traps to be located where the flying squirrels are active. In the situation you explained above, I’m certain you will not successfully lure all the squirrels in your attic to one trap location. They just don’t forage enough for this to happen. In fact there could be different “nests” or colonies in your attic. I’ve seen this many times; attics with multiple entry points will enable different colonies to access the same space. But since flying squirrels don’t forage much once inside, these colonies can coexist without conflict. I point this out because this is one of the main reasons why exact trap placement or repeller placement is critical when needing to remove, trap or repel flying squirrels. Many times your trap may catch 5-10 animals in one location and just 25 feet away there could be a whole other colony that won’t be affected. For this reason it’s imperative you focus on every place you hear activity. This approach will assure you get all that have entered and made your attic their home.
With that being said, I don’t think live trapping would be a good choice for your situation. What I do think would work is if you’re somehow able to locate 2-4 of either the 747774 or 747810 Ultra Sound Repellers. Either of these units will work on flying squirrels. Since flying squirrels so sensitive to the sound, they’ll stay away from where they hear it. So again, the key for you will be proper placement. As our article explains, ultra sound doesn’t do a good job “going around bends” or through anything. That means you’ll need to have the sound directed at the target site without being blocked. So unless your attic is fairly wide open, this could be tough to achieve with only one access point.
If you cannot get wide coverage from the one entry point you described above, you may opt for one of two other options. First, making small access points into which either unit can be inserted would most definitely work. This would no doubt mean some extra installation work and effort but it could make the Ultra Sound Units very effective and in the long run prove to the easiest way to get a decent installation with adequate coverage. Second, you might try going for an outside installation. If the entry points to the attic are just under the eaves or roof overhangs, you might be able to mount either unit tight to the overhang, directly underneath it, so they won’t get rained upon. Even though these two units aren’t designed to be used outside in the open, they can be set up outside where they’ll be protected. This would also allow you to mount them all the way around the house thus protecting all entry points without having to do much in the way of closure. Which leads me to explain the difference between the two units.
Both the 747774 and the 747810 will repel flying squirrels. The big difference is that the 747810 has a wider khz range so it can affect more animals. It’s also 15-25% stronger. That means it has a larger area it can protect which may be important if you find you’re needing to get around a lot of wood or other parts of the home that might be blocking the path of the sound. For outside use, this wouldn’t be nearly as important. But if there is a lot of supporting 2×4’s or other timber up in the attic that might deflect the sound being projected and you want to try the inside installation, the 747810 would be the better choice to install.
Lastly, it would be wise to do some closure next spring or summer when most flying squirrels will leave structures and live outside. Simply closing all the gaps and seams leading inside the attic will go a long way at keeping these guys out and since you know where they’re getting in, you should be able to isolate just where you need to seal and do some closure. Remember, you could install some of the SCREENING or NETTING alone since flying squirrels won’t chew through it. These options are very effective for bats but work on the delicate flying squirrels as well. These little guys just don’t like the obstruction and will stay off it where encountered. Mind you these options won’t work for rats or regular gray tree squirrels but they do for flying squirrels. But in the end and definitely my choice for doing the job right, using the repellent PUR FOAM and COPPER WOOL would be the best way to go.
Here are direct links to the information and products listed above:
Flying Squirrel Control: http://www.bugspray.com/catalog/products/page359.html
747774 Ultra Sound: http://www.bugspray.com/catalog/products/page369.html#747774
747810 Ultra Sound: http://www.bugspray.com/catalog/products/page369.html#747810
Bat Screening: http://www.bugspray.com/catalog/products/page212.html
Bat Netting: http://www.bugspray.com/catalog/products/page1705.html
Pur Foam: http://www.bugspray.com/catalog/products/page2133.html
Copper Wool: http://www.bugspray.com/catalog/products/page1135.html
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